Mississippi couple’s health care journey prompts $1M donation to transform cancer outcomes
Published on Monday, August 11, 2025
By: Danny Barrett Jr., dlbarrett@umc.edu
Photos By: Melanie Thortis/ UMMC Communications
Amanda and Payton Lockey had much to show in the way of achievements– an Eagle Scout medal, bachelor’s degree in geology and a thriving business for Payton and a licensure in physical therapy for Amanda, and two young children, to name just a few.
Cancer, however, wasn’t in their plans. In 2014, Amanda was diagnosed with a pancreatic neuroendocrine tumor, a condition that occurs in just 5% of all pancreatic cancer cases.
With such a rare diagnosis, the Lockeys understand the acute need for advanced cancer care and life-saving research in Mississippi and have made a $1 million donation to support this work.
Their gift supports the construction of a state-of-the-art five-story, 250,000-square-foot facility to promote research and enhance patient access to life-saving care while educating the next generation of scientists and health care professionals. The new facility will be designed to provide a welcoming, interdisciplinary space that enhances patient care, improves access and offers a seamless health care experience for patients and caregivers.
UMMC has initiated a $125 million capital campaign to fund the new building, and Payton is on the campaign committee.
“Amanda and Payton’s extraordinary $1 million gift to the UMMC Cancer Center and Research Institute’s capital campaign is a powerful testament to their deep commitment to the people of Mississippi,” said Dr. Rodney Rocconi, director of the CCRI and Ergon Chair for Cancer Research. “Beyond the Lockeys’ personal generosity, Payton’s tireless involvement on our Capital Campaign Committee in championing our vision has been instrumental in driving this effort forward. Mississippians like Amanda and Payton make it possible to bring world-class cancer care home, and their support will have a lasting impact on generations of patients and families across our state.”
“So many people have called me for advice on pancreatic cancer who don’t have the means to find the right specialist,” Amanda said.
“We’re involved in the capital campaign because people shouldn’t have to struggle to see the right doctor because they don’t have the resources to travel out of state.”
The Lockeys’ donation and involvement in the effort aligns with UMMC’s broader goal to transform cancer care and outcomes in Mississippi, the state with the highest cancer mortality rate in the nation. In addition to building a state-of-the-art facility, a critical part of the overall plan is for the Medical Center to achieve National Cancer Institute (NCI) designation. There are 72 NCI designated centers across the country, but none are located in Mississippi. UMMC is the only health care institution in Mississippi with an active research mission, which is required for NCI designation.
Since joining the capital campaign team nearly a year ago, the Lockeys learned even more about the dire health statistics and cancer outcomes that have affected numerous other families in Mississippi – including Payton’s.
“My dad was a head and neck cancer surgeon,” Payton said, referring to his father, Dr. Myron Lockey, who spent 10 years at UMMC, including as chair of the Department of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery before entering private practice. He died about four months before Amanda’s diagnosis.
“He tried to rid people of cancer all his life,” he said. “He ultimately died of cancer, and so did my mom. Multiply all that by the need for people in the state to have access to good care who need it is why we felt so compelled to do it.”
The pace of life has slowed down for Amanda compared to her days as a physical therapist before the Lockeys began raising their two children, Lacy, now 21, and Payton, now 18. She earned a master’s degree in the program at the UMMC School of Health Related Professions in 2001. In 2000, Payton entered the business side of environmental geology and co-founded Vacuum Truck Rentals, which operates today along Highway 49 in Richland.
Her current health status is a story in survival, one managed carefully by specialists. The five-year survival rate for stage 4 neuroendocrine pancreatic cancer is 19%, according to the American Cancer Society. The road to care – as it does for many with specific types of cancers – led them outside Mississippi for long stretches of time.
“There were no specialists around here for what I had,” Amanda said. “So, we had to travel outside Mississippi for my treatments. I know how fortunate I am in this because we have the means to travel and see specialists out of state. But it’s not lost on me that not everyone can do that.”
Their travels led to the Markey Cancer Center at the University of Kentucky, among the centers with the same NCI designation UMMC now seeks.
“Along the way, we found out there weren’t a lot of people inside and outside the medical industry putting money into clinical trials and development for treatment options for this type of cancer,” Payton said. “We quickly formed the Amanda W. Lockey Foundation and raised over $1 million to fund clinical trials at the University of Kentucky, where we first sought treatment.”
Strong ties to the medical community in Jackson through his father’s legacy led the Lockeys’ philanthropic efforts back to UMMC, specifically the Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders at Children’s of Mississippi. Inspired by UMMC’s commitment, Payton then joined the CCRI capital campaign.
“The development staff came to me with all this excitement about the campaign, how it will build this cancer center and that UMMC has a plan to achieve NCI designation,” Payton said. “I’d love to raise even more than the campaign goal. I haven’t talked to anyone in the community who isn’t enthusiastic about this.”
What the state’s health statistics mean for both them and numerous other families is what drives the Lockeys to encourage others who can give and to get involved with the campaign.
“I learned we have one of the highest mortality rates of cancer in the country, especially in the Mississippi Delta,” he said. “That was a bit of a shock. I’ve also learned that having access to an NCI-designated center gives patients a better prognosis and outcome going forward, by about 25%.
“People who have cancer here could be my employees, my family, my colleagues or my friends, and they will need this type of facility. That’s why I’m a part of this and doing everything I can do.”
For more information about the CCRI capital campaign, visit https://abouttime.ms/